TV Dramas Love a Good Explosion — But Here’s What They Get Wrong About Pipelines

Okay, I’ll admit it — I’m a closet Chicago TV franchise fan. Love a good crossover event, love the drama, love the wildly unrealistic emergencies that somehow always escalate in the most cinematic way possible before the first responders save the day.

But the epic crossover event hinged on the dramatics of a major gas pipeline explosion in downtown Chicago and I have to call out the convenient omission of modern pipeline safety tech. Remote monitoring, automatic shut-off valves, 24/7 control centers — these things exist for a reason. The idea that a leak would go completely unchecked until ‘boom’ just isn’t how things work.

I get it, realism doesn’t typically make for a great plot — I’m not sure who wants to watch an engineer calmly shutting off a pipeline from their control room. But fear-based storytelling around energy infrastructure has real-world consequences. Natural gas is reliable, safe and getting safer every day — maybe a little less dramatic, but way more important.

As much as I’d love to simply enjoy a far-fetched TV drama without overthinking it, I can’t ignore how these exaggerated storylines can shape public perception. Is this how doctors feel watching Grey’s Anatomy?

Emma Kirschler is Senior Communications Specialist with Williams, a leading midstream company.